ABSTRACT
This opening chapter sets the stage for the volume by reflecting on a decade of work at the intersection of data protection and humanitarian practice.
Drawing on a broad range of operational, legal, regulatory, policy, technology, and diplomatic workstreams of the International Committee of the Red Cross in this area, it weaves these threads together into a coherent holistic approach that not only traces how the field has evolved, but also offers a framework for understanding the challenges and imperatives that shape humanitarian action today.
The chapter explores how digital transformation over the last ten years has been reshaping the sector. It examines two key impacts of this transformation. First, the heightened challenges of upholding the dignity, rights, and agency of affected populations in increasingly data-driven environments, and how data protection enables a more transparent, accountable, and context-sensitive response. Second, the growing risks brought by digitalisation and reliance on digital infrastructure for the capacity to operate according to the fundamental principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, for the trust in humanitarian operations, and how data protection reinforces the legal and operational safeguards humanitarian actors rely on, including their exclusively humanitarian purpose.
In closing, the chapter looks ahead, highlighting the capacities, partnerships, and investment in research and development needed to ensure that digital transformation remains responsible and fit for humanitarian purposes. As a standalone Section 1, it sets the analytical and practical foundation for the chapters that follow and offers a shared point of reference for humanitarian practitioners and policymakers.
